The Lincoln MKZ, initially named the Lincoln Zephyr, is a mid-size, entry-level luxury car from the Lincoln division of the Ford Motor Company. Lincoln revived the Zephyr name in the fall of 2005 as a platform-mate for the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan; the vehicles were based on the CD3 platform, which was derived from the Mazda 6. The Zephyr's sole powertrain was a 3.0 L DOHC Duratec V6 mated to an Aisin 6-speed automatic transmission; identical to the V6 powertrain that was optional in the Fusion and Milan. Visually, the Zephyr could be easily distinguished from its Ford and Mercury siblings thanks to unique fascias and other stylistic elements, but as much as 35% of its body panels were shared with the other cars. However, the interior is entirely unique to the Lincoln, and this, along with different equipment packaging, helped differentiate the brands. Reflecting its entry-level luxury position, the 2006 Zephyr started at a base MSRP of $29,995 USD, ranging up to $35,575 USD when fully optioned.Though slightly smaller and natively front-wheel drive, the Zephyr was marketed as a replacement for Lincoln's previous entry level mid-size, the rear-wheel drive, V8-equipped Lincoln LS. To facilitate a smooth transition, the Zephyr and LS were sold parallel to each other during the 2006 model year, the first model year of the Zephyr and the last for the LS. Ironically the Zephyr's first model year was also its last, in name. For 2007 the car was renamed MKZ, and took over the LS' market with sales beginning in September 2006. Lincoln's decision to resurrect the Zephyr name refers to the very early days of Lincoln before World War II. At that time, the only Lincoln manufactured was the Lincoln K-series which was a full-size sedan, and Lincoln, under the direction of Edsel Ford, Henry Ford's only son, hoped to indroduce a smaller product to compete with the LaSalle, a smaller sibling offered at Cadillac dealerships. The Zephyr moniker was discontinued after a year, switching to MKZ to align with Lincoln's alphanumeric naming strategy. Previously during the early 1980s, the Zephyr name reappeared on a compact sedan called the Mercury Zephyr, a twin of the Ford Fairmont, however the Mercury Zephyr was replaced after a short period of time with the Mercury Topaz, itself a twin of the Ford Tempo.
Highlighting the MKZ for 2007, other than the new name, was a mild exterior refresh, optional all-wheel drive, and a larger displacement engine with more power. The MKZ name followed a new nomenclature used at Lincoln for new vehicles beginning in the 2007 model year (existing models such as the Navigator and Town Car have been unaffected thus far). Ford initially intended the "MK" to represent an abbreviation of its traditional "Mark" naming series, but has since abandoned that in favor of simply reading the letters. The Lincoln MKZ (and the Zephyr before it) is built at Ford's Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, plant.
The MKZ was the first in this series of new "MK"-named Lincolns, and has since been followed by the MKX, MKT and MKS. For 2010 the MKZ was revised with new exterior and interior styling along with other new features. A version hybrid was launched in the U.S. market in September 2010, becoming the United States Environmental Protection Agency's most fuel efficient luxury sedan in the U.S. until the release of the 2011 Lexus CT 200h. The MKZ Hybrid is also the first (as and of July 2011, the only) hybrid in the market priced the same as its conventional gasoline-engine version (although the hybrid model's engine has two fewer cylinders than the gasoline-engine model).
